PRELIMINARY STUDY ON SOIL-WATER CHARACTERISTICS OF MARYLAND CLAY

摘要

Many studies have been conducted in the past on the determination of soil-water characteristics, but there is relative little literature on the SWCC for expansive soils. Also, little attention has been give to the necessity of measuring the deformation of the soil specimen. The SWCC of Maryland expansive clay was obtained in this study by combining the suction controlled oedometer test method with the desiccator method. The laboratory test results indicate that the 'true' air entry value for an expansive soil can only be discerned from the degree of saturation versus soil suction plot. The results also show that a reduction in void ratio due to increased net normal stresses applied to the specimen leads to a higher air entry value for the soil.